The present invention relates to a lacing device for ski boots, and more particularly to novel means for anchoring one of the two members composing the said lacing device to the ski boot.
The modern ski boots are provided with a number of lacing devices each comprising a hooked lever-like lacing member cooperating with a ring-like lacing member. The said members are usually fastened to base plates, which in turn are secured, usually by means of rivets, to the ski boot upper, at both sides of the longitudinal opening formed in the upper and defined by the two flaps of the ski boot upper.
According to the two co-pending applications No. 699,682 and No. 699,700, both filed on June 25, 1976 in the name of the same applicant as in the present invention, means have been proposed for easily mounting and disassembling the lacing members on the ski boot upper, by providing on the said upper suitably shaped projections onto which there may be secured, with a snap fit or with a sliding fit, elements for hingedly supporting and anchoring to said projections the lacing members.
The object of the present invention is to provide novel means for anchoring to the ski boot upper the ring-like lacing member of the lacing device, and particularly a ring-like lacing member of the type constructed with flexible elastic wire.
Lacing members constructed of a closed (ring-like) piece of elastic flexible wire, preferably steel wire, are well known in the art, and are advantageously employed since, due to their flexibility, they can be directly secured to the ski boot upper without the need of elements ensuring a hinged connection to the said upper, as instead it is necessarily required in the case of ring-like lacing members constructed of rigid (not flexible) wire material, (see for example the two above mentioned applications). Usually, these ring-like lacing members of elastic flexible wire are secured to the ski boot upper by means of metal straps which are riveted to the upper, or by other means which anyhow require, both at the moment of assembling of the lacing device on the upper, and at the moment of disassembling same from the upper, the operation of a skilled person with the aid of special tools and, particularly in the case of substitution of damaged parts, with the additional risk of damaging the boot.
According to the present invention, the anchoring of the flexible elastic ring-like lacing member on the ski boot upper is accomplished by providing on the ski boot upper a suitably shaped projection presenting a groove which can be engaged by a locking element provided with at least a channel like portion inside which there can be arranged a portion of the flexible ring-like lacing member, in such a manner that, upon engagement of the locking element inside the groove of the projection, a portion of the ring-like lacing member is practically enclosed in at least a tubular channel defined by the locking element and by a wall of the groove, whereby the ring-like lacing member will have the possibility of axially sliding along said tubular channel, which is most advantageous for adjustment purposes, while being secured to the ski boot upper.
In order to avoid an accidental disengagement of the locking element from the projection provided in the ski boot upper, the said locking element is provided with suitable anchoring means, such as indentations or portions adapted to snap into correspondingly shaped portions of the ski boot upper.
These and other features of the invention will be clearly understood from the following description of some preferred embodiments thereof with reference to the accompanying drawings, and the novel features will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.